Nepali woman gang-raped in Delhi, none arrested

New Delhi, April 18, 2013 [IANS] --- A Nepali woman in her early 20s was allegedly gang-raped in the national capital, police said Thursday. The woman was found in half-naked and semi-conscious condition near Nanakpura flyover in south Delhi around 7.30 a.m. Thursday. The woman was taken to Safdarjung Hospital where she is being treated. According to her statement to police, she was abducted from Kotla Mubarkpur area near South Extension in south Delhi Wednesday night by three unidentified people, who raped and dumped her near the flyover.

Share:

Read full story►

POST DELHI GANG-RAPED :Helpline for women set up in India's Capital

New Delhi, 16 Jan 2013 [NDTV] --- The '181' helpline service for women in Delhi made a sputtering debut two weeks ago, hampered by technical glitches. A fortnight later, there are some encouraging signs of the service being streamlined, with more calls going through and being addressed.  When NDTV did a reality check a day after its launch, the helpline had two lines to receive calls and was manned by an all-male staff. Now, there's an all-woman team that fields calls in the control room, round the clock, in shifts.  "The staff that we have picked either has first-hand experience of harassment cases, or has experience in dealing with complaints of women in distress," says Khadija Farooqui, a human rights consultant to the Delhi Government. Located in a special room in the Delhi Secretariat complex, the helpline now operates via three telephone incoming lines. As complaints and alerts come in, a floor manager forwards them same to either the Delhi Police or the Delhi Commission for Women, depending on the nature of the complaint. Operators say that most of the distress calls come late in the evening - between 8 pm and midnight - and complaints of stalking top the list of grievances. Offensive calls and text messages are the other most-reported complaints. "Earlier we were able to respond to only 20 per cent of the calls that we received; now that number has gone up to over 70 per cent," Kulanand Joshi, one of the personnel in charge of the helpline told NDTV. The helpline was launched as part of a slew of measures by the Delhi government to improve the safety and security of women in the capital in the aftermath of the brutal December 16 gang-rape case.  Since the Delhi Police does not report to the Delhi government, this helpline acts more as a forwarding agency. The challenge now for the government is to effectively follow up on the complaints with the police and its agencies and ensure that they are addressed expeditiously.

Share:

Read full story►

Vital changes needed in IPC to help women: Experts

Police officers and legal experts say there are fundamental problems in the Indian Penal Code that need urgent correction to make it women-friendly New Delhi, Jan 2, 2013 [IANS] --- Calling the Delhi gang-rape "the worst in the world", police officers are calling for urgent amendments in the archaic Indian Penal Code (IPC) to provide justice to women in distress. Even police officers who have over the decades seen countless bodies and battered humans are unable to control their emotions as they talk about the savagery committed Dec 16 on the victim who finally died Dec 29. "We have never seen a beastly crime like this," one officer told IANS. "Forget the details… I can tell you with authority that there has never been a rape like this anywhere in the world." This is a rare case when most police officers surprisingly are in agreement with what protesters are demanding on the streets: death for all six rapists. "What happened on Dec 16 was shocking," another officer added. "We too are human, we too have daughters, wives and mothers. It is impossible to tell anyone what this woman underwent in the (moving) bus." All the accused have been charged with murder since the 23-year-old woman who was brutally raped and tortured succumbed to multiple organ failure in a Singapore hospital after struggling for 13 days to live. The woman and her male friend boarded the bus in south Delhi's Munirka area Dec 16 night. The bus was plying illegally, and within moments the six males began assaulting her. Her friend was badly beaten. After 40 minutes of savagery, in which the attackers also used an iron rod, both victims were thrown out - naked, shivering and bleeding. Police say the crew tried to crush the gang-rape victim but failed. Police officers and legal experts say there are some fundamental problems related to the IPC that need urgent correction if the law has to become women-friendly. One IPC provision needing early change is section 354 which deals with "outraging the modesty of women". The punishment under this - two years in jail or fine or both - is the same irrespective of whether merely someone passes lewd remarks or tugs a woman's dress or actually makes a physical advance.  The nature of punishment gives vast discretion to judicial officers. This is also an easily bailable offence. Experts and officers say there should be three gradations in this section, with "simple harassment" inviting lesser punishment and the more serious assaults deserving harsher punishment. If punishment goes up, the cases will go to a sessions judge, and bail won't be easy. "Section 354 is what is used most extensively," one officer said. "Most complaints of women relate to this section. But as the accused get bail, women feel cheated and betrayed." Police officers say there should also be death penalty even for rapes in the "rarest of rare cases" - as defined by the Supreme Court for murder. "There may be rapes where the victims may be badly traumatized and barely be living," said the officer. "Such cases should call for death penalty." The current punishment for rape under Section 376 provides for punishment from seven years to life. Women's groups have been repeatedly calling for amendments in law, pointing out that some IPC sections, framed during a bygone era, do not correspond to present realities. The six Delhi rapists have been charged with, among other things, gang-rape as defined by IPC section 376(2)(G). Under this sub-section, each accused present during a gang-rape would be deemed to have assaulted the victim irrespective of whether he took part in the rape or not. "Even if one or two among the six accused in Delhi did not rape her, that makes no difference," he said. "As far as the law is concerned, they are all equally culpable."

Share:

Read full story►

16-yr-old girl murdered by youth in Andhra, rape suspected

Hyderabad, Dec 31, 2012 (IANS) --- In yet another shocking incident, a 16-year-old girl was murdered by a youth in Andhra Pradesh's Ranga Reddy district. She was suspected to have been raped by the accused before killing her.

The girl, a student of Class 10, was found hanging from a tree Sunday evening in a farm in Dasarlapally village in Ranga Reddy district, about 100 km from here.

According to police, the girl, a student of a school at Kandukur, came to the village on a holiday and went to the field for some work. A few hours later, her body was found hanging from a mango tree.

A police officer said they found a 16-year-old youth in unconscious state nearby.

Police arrested U. Naresh, who allegedly attempted to rape the girl. When she resisted, he brutally assaulted her and hanged her from the tree.

The body was sent for autopsy. The police said they were investigating if the girl was raped before being killed.

The latest incident came even as four incidents of rapes and attempts to rape were reported from different parts of the state in last two days.

A police constable and a Village Administrative Officer (VAO) in Krishna district were booked on charges of raping women in two different incidents.

In another incident, a six-year-old girl was molested by a man in Prakasam district.

In the fourth incident, a police constable tried to kidnap a 16-year-old girl in Nalgonda district with an intention to rape her. Locals foiled the cop's attempt and handed him over to police.

Share:

Read full story►

Delhi Gangrape: Draft Chargesheet Ready

New Delhi, Dec 31, 2012 [CNN-IBN] --- The Delhi Police has finalised the draft chargesheet in the gangrape and murder case of a 23-year-old paramedical student in a moving bus in the national capital. According to sources, the Delhi Police is expected to cite 30 witnesses in connection with the case.

As of now, the draft chargesheet is being vetted by legal experts, and in the court, the police would ask for hanging of the accused under the rarest of rare category, said sources.

This comes two days after the Delhi Police said that they would file the chargesheet in the case by January 3, 2013. After the death of the braveheart, the police had said that all the accused in the case would be charged with murder. While one of the accused is a minor, the others are Ram Singh, Pawan Gupta, Vinay Sharma, Mukesh and Akshay Singh alias Thakur.

The five accused who are above the age of 18 years will be charged under Section 302 (murder) and could be given death penalty. Police have also sought the court's permission to get a bone marrow check to ascertain the age of the accused, who is claiming to be minor.

Two of the accused - Mukesh and Akshay Singh alias Thakur - have undergone the test identification parade while the others refused to do so. Both Mukesh and Akshay Singh alias Thakur were identified by the braveheart's male friend, a 28-year-old software engineer, who was with the girl when the horrific crime took place. Her friend was also brutally beaten up by the accused when he tried to defend and save her.

Meanwhile, Supreme Court lawyer Dayan Krishnan has been appointed as the special public prosecutor by the Delhi Police to conduct trial in the December 16 case. Following his appointment, Krishnan had said, "I had given my consent to conduct the trial."

Krishnan has been representing NIA, Delhi Police and other agencies at various judicial fora in many cases including the Nitish Katara murder case.

Share:

Read full story►

SHAME INDIA! DELHI Gangrape victim dies IN SINGAPORE

New Delhi, Dec 29, 2012 (IANS) --- A young woman who was brutally gang-raped and tortured in the Indian capital died in Singapore early Saturday. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said it was up to "us all to ensure that her death will not have been in vain". The victim, whose name has not been revealed, "passed away peacefully at 4.45 a.m. (2.15 IST)," with her distraught family and Indian diplomats by her side, Singapore's Mount Elizabeth Hospital's Kelvin Loh said. The 23-year-old woman suffered multiple-organ failure after she was raped by six males, including a juvenile, in a moving bus in Delhi for around 40 minutes Dec 16 and dumped her by a roadside. Her male friend was also badly beaten up and thrown out of the bus. All six accused have been arrested and are in Delhi's Tihar Central Jail. Authorities in India shifted the woman, who had been on ventilator support since her rape, to Singapore Thursday in a last ditch attempt to save her life. "Despite all efforts by a team of eight specialists in Mount Elizabeth Hospital to keep her stable, her condition continued to deteriorate over these two days," Loh said. "She had suffered from severe organ failure following serious injuries to her body and brain. "She was courageous in fighting for her life for so long against the odds but the trauma to her body was too severe for her to overcome." B.D. Athani, medical superintendent of Delhi's Safdarjung Hospital, said the woman had been speaking to her mother and other family members earlier, giving the impression that she would somehow survive. But her condition deteriorated rapidly after a third operation, with a fatal infection spreading to her chest, lungs and intestine, he said. Expressing his deepest condolences, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said it was up to "us all to ensure that her death will not have been in vain" and India becomes "a demonstrably better and safer place for women to live in". He said he joined the nation "in conveying to her family and friends" his deepest condolences at this "terrible loss". "I want to tell them and the nation that while she may have lost her battle for life, it is up to us all to ensure that her death will not have been in vain. India's High Commissioner to Singapore, T.C.A. Raghavan, said the woman's family was "shattered". "It was very trying for the family. The girl of course was unconscious," he said. "I must say they (the family) bore the entire process with a great deal of fortitude and courage." He said her body would be flown to India Saturday afternoon. The prime minister said: "We have already seen the emotions and energies this incident has generated. These are perfectly understandable reactions from a young India and an India that genuinely desires change." It would be a true homage to her memory, he added, if these emotions and energies were channelized into a constructive course of action. "The need of the hour is a dispassionate debate and inquiry into the critical changes that are required in societal attitudes. "The government is examining, on priority basis, the penal provisions that exist for such crimes and measures to enhance the safety and security of women." The horrific gang-rape, in which the rapists used an iron rod to torture her, triggered angry demonstrations across india against growing sexual crimes against women. A policeman died in one such protest in Delhi. The Indian government vowed to fast track the trial of the accused.

Share:

Read full story►

Nobody safe in Delhi, says anguished court

New Delhi, Dec 19, 2012 (IANS): "Nobody is safe here," the Delhi High Court remarked Wednesday as it took suo moto notice of a woman's gang-rape in a bus and told Delhi Police to file a report by Friday. The Delhi government informed the court that a Special Investigation Team (SIT) had been set up to investigate the crime to be headed by Deputy Commissioner of Police Chhaya Sharma. The court asked the SIT to file a status report within two days. Chief Justice D. Murugesan and Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw also directed the government and the police commissioner that investigations "must be of high standard" and concluded "as expeditiously as possible". Justice Murugesan observed: "Nobody is safe here, it's repeatedly seen in Delhi." The bench also directed the Delhi government to provide the best possible medical facilities to the victim and her male friend who were attacked in the bus Sunday night. "Provide best possible treatment to the victim and her friend, shift her to (the) best private hospital if required. And if transfer from hospital is not possible, bring in the best doctor for her," the bench said. Advocate Najmi Waziri, standing counsel of the Delhi government, told the court that the "woman is in critical condition and the best possible treatment would be given to her". "If transfer to another hospital is required, we would bring the best doctor to her. We have promised the girl's family best medical treatment for her," the advocate said. The bench said it would monitor the case, and asked Police Commissioner Neeraj Kumar to revert in two days, detailing the names of police officers deployed at checkposts on the night of the incident. The bus was driven around the city for 40 minutes Sunday night while the rapists committed the crime. Delhi's standing counsel Pawan Sharma said four of the accused had been arrested, adding police had gone to Bihar and Uttar Pradesh in search of two others. Sharma said police were set to file a chargesheet within a month. The court observed: "It is the duty of the police to ensure that such incidents do not happen. What was the police force doing while the offenders roamed (the) city streets for 40 minutes?" The court said it would issue guidelines to be followed in such cases. The bench pulled up the police for not taking precautions earlier. "The police commissioner is directed to comply with the Supreme Court order for removing tinted film from vehicles, including public transport systems," the court said. Waziri told the court that officers faced problems in implementing the Supreme Court order as vehicles from other states had tinted windows. The bench directed police perosnnel at border checkposts to ensure that no such vehicle entered the city. Justice Murugesan said Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit had proposed five fast-tack courts to deal with rape cases. The judge said the proposal was immediately accepted. He added, however, that unless investigation was conducted properly and witnesses produced during trial, even fast-track courts would not serve any purpose.

Share:

Read full story►